Principles of Non-Violence, Part 1 (The Man in the Mirror #22)

Looting, rioting, buildings being set on fire, police vehicles being set on fire, throwing rocks, bottles, and bricks at police officers, as well as attacks on news reporters has been taking place in Baltimore over the past 48 hours. All of this is done in the name of "protest" and under the auspices of "demanding justice" over the unanswered questions surrounding the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man, while he was in police custody.

The images and videos coming out of Baltimore are a far cry from the orderly, civilized protest marches led by Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders of the 1950s and 1960s. Even while black men were being lynched, while protesters were being beaten, hosed, and mauled by police, and while the houses and churches of protest leaders were being bombed, the men and women we celebrate as American heroes today never engaged in acts of violence against the government or against other citizens no matter how unjustly and unfairly they felt they were being treated. 

The young people who are engaging in the violent and destructive acts that we see in Baltimore (and who did the same in Ferguson) are not heroes. They will be remembered in infamy and their actions will be a black mark on the reputation of the African-American community.

Martin Luther King Jr. and his allies believed in non-violent protest. King taught six principles of non-violence. In this and future episodes, we will look at each of this principles in hopes that, should you find yourself in the midst of a protest situation in your community, you will choose the path of non-violence.

The first of Dr. King's principles is: "Nonviolence is a way of life for courageous people. It is active nonviolent resistance to evil. It is assertive spiritually, mentally, and emotionally."

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